After two days of searching, officials at a Louisiana aquarium have finally located a 12-foot-long albino Burmese python that escaped from its enclosure earlier this week.
The Advocate reports that Cara the python broke out of her enclosure early Monday morning at the Blue Zoo Aquarium, which is located inside the Mall of Louisiana in Baton Rouge.
According to CNN, Cara escaped her exhibit by "brute force" when it bent the tank's corner to get free.
"This is like if we lost our child," Blue Zoo spokeswoman Ronda Swanson told The Advocate.
Officials briefly shut down the mall on Tuesday morning when they discovered the snake was missing. As the search continued, officials persuaded tenants to reopen their stores, noting that Cara is nonvenomous and unlikely to attack humans.
CNN reports that the aquarium brought in night vision and motion sensor cameras in an attempt to find Cara. But it wasn't until Thursday morning that they found the snake in a crawl space.
WBRZ-TV in Baton Rouge reports that Cara was found safe and sound but was transported to the LSU School of Veterinary Medicine for a health check as a precaution.
"We couldn't be more excited to share with you that the search is over! Cara has been found, safe and healthy!" Blue Zoo said in a Facebook post.
The aquarium reopened its doors on Friday.
